""*'   Unive^ty   Librarjes 

Constiutuion  of 
pam.  Coll.  3259 

J>*»055715  + 


Louisiana  tftoV  \ 

1851  P 

Cataloged  3NSTITUTI0* 


NEW  ENGLAND  SOCIETY  OF  LOUISIANA. 


AN     ORATION 


DELIVERED    BEFORE    THE    SOCIETY.    FEBRUARY   28,    1846. 


BY  HON.  S.  S.  PRENTISS. 


NEW  ORLEANS: 

Printed  at  the  Office  of  the  ."Daily  Crescent."  93  St;  Charles  street. 
1851. 


4>& 


,<r* 


Btoi^-U-ytfrii 


LIS 


1851. 


J      _,, 

J.W.STANTON,  1st  Vice  Pratt. 

R.  B.  SUMNER,  2^  yv«sPr«7. 

JAS.  I.  DAY,  3^  7i«?  Pm'*. 

GEO.  O.  SWEET,  4th  Vice  PresH 
DUDLEY  CHASE,  Secretary 

H.  G.  STETSON,  Treasurer. 

H.  EDWARDS,  M.  D.,    Physician. 


OFFICERS    AN©    MEMBERS. 


President. 

RELIEF  COMMITTEE. 
CHARLES  GARDINER, 
MOSES  GREENWOOD, 
WM.  J.  DEWEY, 
JOHN  LEEDS, 
THOMAS  A.  ADAMS, 
T.  ALLEN  CLARK, 
WM.  M.  GOODRICH. 


ANDREWS,  JNO.  W. 
ADAMS,  THOS.  A. 
ADAMS,  THOS.  E. 
AINSWORTH,  A.  C. 
BULLARD,  H.  A. 
BRADFORD,  E    A. 
BABCOCK,  G.  W. 
BEAN,  HORACE 
BUNCE,  C.  D. 
BAKER,  W.  A. 
BARTELS,  JNO.  O. 

BAXTER,  H.  V. 

BULL,  ANDREW  G. 

BLACKMAN,    GEORGE 

CLARK,  T.  A. 

CLARK,  WM.  JR. 

COTTLE; JOHN 

CUTTER,  C.  S. 

CHASE,  DUDLEY 

CROSSMAN,  A.  D. 

DAY,  J.  I. 

DOANE,  CHARLES 

DOANE,  HARMON 

DUNBAR,  A.  F. 

DEWEY,  WM.  J. 

DUNBAR,  GEO.  W. 

DAVIS,  EDWARD 

EUSTIS,  GEORGE 

EUSTIS,  GEO.  JR. 

EDWARDS,  J.  A. 

EDWARDS,  H. 

FOSTER,  J.  W. 

FLINT,  E.  H. 


FOSTER,  J.  B. 
FROST,  J.  W. 
GAINES,  J.  G. 
GARDINER,  CHAS. 
GOODRICH,  WM.  M. 
GUSTINE,  F.  W. 
GREENWOOD,    MOSES 
GRINNELL,   EDWARD 
GOULD,  J.  M. 
HARROD,  CHAS. 
HUNTINGTON,  G.  W. 
HUNTINGTON,  W. 

HOLBROOK,  A.  M. 

HENDERSON,  WM. 

HAYDEN,  DAVID 

HILL,  ALLEN 

HARTWELL,  A.  C.  L. 

HEALD,  J.  H. 

HOBART,  A.  JR. 

JARVIS,    NATHAN 

JOSEPHS,  A.  R. 

KENDALL,    G.  W. 

KIRKLAND,  S.  W. 

KENNEDY,  S.  H. 

LEEDS,  JOHN 

LEEDS,  C.  J. 

LEEDS,  THOS. 

LITTLEFIELD,  S.  S. 

LATHROP,  HENRY 

LOVELL,  J.  F. 

MONTGOMERY,  R.  W. 

MUDGE,   S.  H. 

MORSE,  R.  L. 


NORTH,  JAMES  E. 
OLCUTT,  E.  K. 
OLIVER,  ANDREW 
PETERS,  S.  J. 
PALFREY,  R.  J. 
PALFREY,  H.  W. 
PEIRCE,  LEVI 
PYNCHON,  G.  A. 
PALMES,  OLIVER 
PALMER,  W.  L. 
PERRY,  O.  H. 

PLUMMER,  GORDON 

REYNOLDS,  C.  L. 

STANTON,  J.  W. 

SUMNER,  R.  B. 

SPRING,  L. 

STETSON,  H.  G. 

SWEET,  G.  O. 

STICKNEY,  A. 

STEBBINS,  CHAS. 

SHERMAN,  H.  T. 

TYLER,  E.  A. 

TURNER,  MORTIMER 

TAYLOR,  Z. 

WILLIAMS,  C.  C. 

WHEELER,  E.  H. 

WINTHROP,    JOHN 

WOOD,  P.  N. 

WRIGHT,  J.  B. 

WILCOX,  O.  L\ 

WEBSTER,  L.  J. 

WATERMAN,  C.  M. 

YALE,    C.  JR. 


int  MUWhRS  COLLECl 

2-  *  Pa m, 

|  Si  5  )  UaiTe^  Library 

Cataloged 

CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  SOCIETY. 


ARTICLE     I. 

NAME. 

The  Society  shall  be  known  as  the  New  England  Society  of  Louisiana, 
and  shall  consist  of  any  number  of  members  not  less  than  twenty-five,  and 
shall  not  cease  to  exist  while  that  number  continue,  and  a  majority  of  such 
number  shall,  at  all  times,  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business. 

ARTICLE    II. 

OBJECT     OF     THE     SOCIETY. 

The  sole  purpose  of  this  Institution  shall  be  to  foster  among  its  members, 
friendship  and  good  feeling,  and  to  assist  the  destitute  and  those  worthy  of 
charity  coming  from  the  New  England  States  of  the  Union. 

ARTICLE    III, 

WHO    MAY    BE    MEMBERS    AND    HOW    ELECTED. 

Any  native  of  New  England,  or  immediate  descendant  of  such,  of  good 
moral  character,  and  twenty-one  years  of  age,  shall  be  eligible  to  membership. 
Applicants  for  admission  after  the  Society  is  organized,  shall  be  nominated 
at  a  regular  meeting  of  the  Society,  and  if  four-fifths  of  those  present  concur, 
(he  applicant  shall  be  admitted  as  a  member. 

ARTICLE    IV. 

ADMISSION    FEE. 

.  Every  member,  on  joining  the  Society,  shall  sign  the  Constitution,  and  pay 
live  dollars  to  the  Treasurer,  and  forthwith  shall  be  entitled  to  a  certificate  of 
membership,  under  seal  of  this  Society,  signed  by  the  President  and  Secretary. 

ARTICLE     V. 

ANNUAL       MEETING. 

The  annual  meeting  of  the  Society  shall  be  held  on  the  twenty-second  day 
of  December,  in  each  year,  at  which  meeting  the  officers  for  the  ensuing  year 


[4  ] 

shall  be  elected  —  an  oration  delivered  by  a  member,  and  all  necessary  busi- 
ness transacted  —  after  which  the  Society  shall  dine  together. 

ARTICLE    VI. 

QUARTERLY      MEETINGS. 

The  Society  shall  also  meet  on  the  twenty-second  day  of  March,  Jtate 
and  September  in  each  year,  for  ordinary  business ;  but  should  either  of  these 
days,  or  the  anniversary,  fall  on  the  Sabbath,  the  meeting  shall  be  on  the 
day  following.     The  hour  of  meeting  shall  be  regulated  by  the  Society. 

ARTICLE    VII. 

OFFICERS,     WHEN    CHOSEN,    AND    DUTIES. 

The  officers  shall  be  elected  at  the  next  meeting  after  the  adoption  of  this 
Constitution,  to  serve  till  the  twenty-second  day  of  December  next ;  after 
which,  the  fifth  article  shall  govern  in  this  respect.  They  shall  be  chosen  by 
ballot,  by  a  majority  of  the  members  present,  and  consist  of — 

A  President,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  preside  at  all  meetings  of  the  So- 
ciety, and  who  shall  have  power  to  call  extra  meetings  whenever  circum- 
stances may  require,  either  in  the  opinion  of  the  Board  of  Managers  or  at  the 
request  of  ten  members  of  the  Society,  and  to  have  a  general  supervision  of 
all  the  concerns  of  the  Institution ; 

A  First  Vice-President,  who  shall  fill  the  place  of  the  President  in  his 
absence ; 

A  Second  Vicc-Prtsident,  who  shall  fill  the  place  of  President  in  absence 
of  both  the  former  ; 

A  Third  Vice-President,  who  shall  fill  the  place  of  President  in  absence 
of  all  the  former  ; 

A  Fourth  Vice-President,  who  shall  fill  the  place  of  the  President  in  case 
of  his  absence,  and  that  of  the  First,  Second  and  Third  Vice-Presidents ; 

A  Treasurer,  who  shall  collect  all  moneys,  receive  all  donations,  keep  ac- 
counts of  the  same,  pay  all  drafts  made  in  pursuance  of  this  Constitution,  and 
render  an  account  of  all  receipts  and  disbursements  to  the  Society  at  the 
annual  meeting ; 

A  Secretary,  who  shall  keep  a  fair  record  of  all  the  proceedings  of  the 
Society,  a  copy  of  this  Constitution  (fairly  engrossed)  in  a  book  kept  for  that 
purpose  and  signed  by  all  the  members,  with  the  date  of  their  several  admis- 
sions, deaths,  resignations,  removals  or  expulsions,  and,  in  general,  for  all 
other  acts  required  by  his  office  ;  and 

Seven  Managers,  who,  with  the  officers  before  mentioned,  shall  form  a 
Board  for  directing  the  concerns  of  the  Society.  Five  of  whom  shall  form  a 
quorum.  The  Board  shall  meet  on  its  own  adjournments,  and  at  the  call  of  the 
acting  President.  They  shall  have  power  to  fill  vacancies  occasioned  by 
death  or  otherwise  among  the  officers  or  managers,  until  the  next  annual 
meeting. 


[5  j 

ARTICLE     VIII. 

treasurer's    account. 
The  Treasurer's  account  shall  be  audited  by  a  committee  appointed  by  the 
Board,  before  being  submitted  to  the  Society  at  the  annual  meeting. 

ARTICLE     IX. 

ANNIVERSARY     DINNER. 

The  Board  shall  appoint  a  committee,  at  a  proper  interval  beforehand,  to 
make  arrangements  for  the  Anniversary  Dinner.  Any  member  desirous  of 
participating,  shall  give  notice  by  enrolling  his  name  upon  a  list,  to  be  kept 
by  the  committee  for  that  purpose,  at  any  time  not  less  than  ten  days  previous 
to  the  Anniversary.  Guests  may  be  invited  at  the  discretion  of  the  commit- 
tee, or  Board  of  Managers,  provided  they  do  not  exceed  the  ratio  of  one  for 
every  four  members  of  the  Society,  subscribing. 

ARTICLE     X. 

BOARD    OF   MANAGERS,    THEIR  DUTY. 

The  Seven  Managers,  without  the  officers,  shall  constitute  a  standing  com- 
mittee on  charity,  any  three  of  whom  shall  form  a  quorum.  It  shall  be  their 
duty  to  search  out  such  persons  as  may  require  the  aid  of  the  Society,  and 
consider  all  applications  made  for  relief:  and,  when  the  proper  cases  occur, 
the  committee  shall  apply  to  the  acting  President,  who  shall  draw  on  the 
Treasurer  for  the  sum  deemed  necessary  by  the  committee.  In  cases  of  ur- 
gent necessity,  any  two  of  the  committee  may  draw  on  the  Treasurer,  for  a 
sum  not  exceeding  thirty-rive  dollars,  in  any  one  case. 

ARTICLE    XI. 

TRUSTEES. 

The  President,  Vice-Presidents,  Secretary  and  Treasurer,  shall  constitute 
a  committee  of  finance,  with  power  to  invest,  from  time  to  time,  the  surplus 
funds  of  the  Society  in  such  manner  as  may  seem  to  them  most  productive. 
All  funds,  so  invested,  to  be  in  the  names  of  the  aforesaid  officers,  as  "  Trus- 
tees of  the  New  England  Society  of  Louisiana." 

ARTICLE    XII. 

ANNUAL     ASSESSMENTS. 

Every  member  shall  pay  into  the  Treasury  of  the  Society  five  dollars,  at 
the  Anniversary  meeting  in  December  in  each  year,  or  as  soon  thereafter  as 
may  be  practicable  ;  and,  in  case  of  neglect  or  refusal  to  make  such  payment 
for  six  months,  thereafter,  the  name  of  such  defaulter,  if  within  the  State, 
shall  be  stricken  from  the  roll  of  the  Society. 
1 


[6  ] 
ARTICLE     XVIII. 

RESIGNATIONS 

Members  wishing  to  resign,  must  tender  their  resignations  in  writing  to 
the  acting  President,  or  either  of  the  standing  committees  or  Board  of  Mana- 
gers. All  arrearages  must  be  discharged  before  such  resignation  can  be  ac- 
cepted. 

ARTICLE      XIV. 

LIFE   MEMBERS. 

Any  member  having  paid  fifty  dollars,  at  any  one  time  into  the  Treasury, 
shall  be  a  member  for  life,  and  subject  to  no  other  dues  but  the  annual  dinner 
fee. 

ARTICLE    XV. 

EXPULSION. 

Any  member  guilty  of  gross  misconduct,  maybe  expelled  by  a  vote  of  two. 
thirds  of  the  members  present,  at  any  regular  meeting  of  the  Society. 

ARTICLE    XVI. 

HONORARY      MEMBERS. 

Any  native  of  New  England  or  immediate  descendant  of  such,  not  residing 
in  the  city  of  New  Orleans,  shall  be  eligible  as  an  honorary  member  of  this 
Society  by  the  vote  of  four-fifths  of  those  present  at  any  regular  meeting. 
Resident  clergymen  of  the  city,  natives  of  New  England,  shall  be  ex-ojficio 
considered  as,  and  entitled  to  the  privilege  of,  honorary  members. 

ARTICLE    XVII. 

ALTERATIONS   OF    CONSTITUTION. 

This  Constitution  shall  only  be  altered  or  amended  at  the  annual  meeting 
of  the  Society,  by  a  vote  of  three-fourths  of  the  members  present. 


BY-LAWS   OF  THE   SOCIETY 

ADOPTED,  MAY   10,   1842. 

In  future,  all  elections  of  members  be  made  by  ballot;  and,  after  the  next 
quarterly  meeting,  no  one  shall  be  ballotted  for  except  his  name  has  been  sub- 
mitted to  the  Society  af  a  previous  meeting ;  and  the  name  of  the  member 
proposing  candidates  shall  also  appear  on  the  minutes. 


ORATION, 


DELIVERED    BY    HON.    S.    S.    PI1E.NTIS3. 


This  is  a  day  dear  to  the  sons  of  New  England,  and  ever  held  by  them  in 
eacred  remembrance.  On  this  day,  from  every  quarter  of  the  globe,  they 
gather  in  spirit  around  the  Rock  of  Plymouth,  and  hang  upon  the  urns  of  their 
Pilgrim  Fathers  the  garlands  of  filial  gratitude  and  affection.  We  have  as- 
sembled for  the  purpose  of  participating  in  this  honorable  duly;  of  performing 
this  pious  pilgrimage.  To-day  we  will  visit  that  memorable  spot.  We  will 
gaze  upon  the  place  where  a  feeble  band  of  persecuted  exiles  founded  a 
mighty  nation:  and  our  hearts  will  exult  with  proud  gratification  as  we 
remember  that  on  that  barren  shore  our  ancestors  planted  not  only  empire  but 
Freedom.     We  will  meditate  upon  their  toil  rings  and  their  virtues, 

and  to-morrow  return  to  our  daily  avocations,  with  minds  refreshed  and  im- 
proved by  the  contemplation  of  their  high  principles  and  noble  purposes. 

The  human  mind  cannot  be  contented  with  the  present.  It  is  ever  journey- 
ing through  the  trodden  regions  of  the  past,  or  making  adventurous  excursions 
into  the  mysterious  realms  of  the  future.  He  who  lives  only  in  the  present, 
is  but  a  brute  and  has  not  attained  the  human  dignity.  Of  the  future  but 
little  is  known  ;  clouds  and  darkness  rest  upon  it ;  we  yearn  to  become 
acquainted  with  its  hidden  secrets  ;  we  stretch  out  our  arms  towards  its 
shadowy  inhabitants ;  we  invoke  our  posterity,  but  they  answer  us  not.  We 
wander  in  its  dim  precincts  till  reason  becomes  confused,  and  at  last  start 
back  in  fear,  like  mariners  who  have  entered  an  unknown  ocean,  of  whose 
winds,  tides,  currents  and  quicksands  they  are  wholly  ignorant.  Then  it  is  we 
turn  for  relief  to  the  past,  that  mighty  reservoir  of  men  and  things.  There 
we  have  something  tangible  to  which  our  sympathies  can  attach ;  upon  which 
we  can  lean  for  support ;  from  whence  we  can  gather  knowledge  and  learn 
wisdom.  There  we  are  introduced  into  Nature's  vast  laboratory  and  witness 
her  elemental  labors.  We  mark  with  interest  the  changes  in  continents  and 
oceans  by  which  she  has  notched  the  centuries.  But  our  attention  is  still 
more  deeply  aroused  by  the  great  moral  events,  which  have  controlled  the 
fortunes  of  those  who  have  preceded  us,  and  still  influence  our  own.  With 
curious  wonder  we  gaze  down  the  long  aisles  of  the  past,  upon  the  genera- 
tions that  are  gone.     We  behold,  as  in  a  magic  glass,  men  in  form  and  feature 


[8] 

like  ourselves,  actuated  by  the  same  motives,  urged  by  the  same  passions, 
busily  engaged  in  shaping  out  both  their  own  destinies  and  ours.  We  ap- 
proach them  and  they  refuse  not  our  invocation.  We  hold  converse  with  the 
wise  philosophers,  the  sage  legislators  and  the  divine  poets.  We  enter  the 
tent  of  the  general  and  partake  of  his  most  secret  counsels.  We  go  forth 
with  him  to  the  battle  field,  and  behold  him  place  his  glittering  squadrons ; 
then  we  listen  with  a  pleasing  fear  to  the  trumpet  and  the  drum,  or  the 
still  more  terrible  music  of  the  booming  cannon  and  the  clashing  arms. 
But  most  of  all,  among  the  innumerable  multitudes  who  people  the  past,  we 
seek  our  own  ancestors,  drawn  towards  them  by  an  irresistible  sympathy. 
Indeed  they  were  our  other  selves.  With  reverent  solicitude  we  examine  into 
their  character  and  actions,  and  as  we  find  them  worth  or  unworthy,  our  hearts 
swell  with  pride,  or  our  cheeks  glow  with  shame.  We  search  with  avidity 
for  the  most  trivial  circumstances  in  their  history,  and  eagerly  treasure  up 
every  memento  of  their  fortunes.  The  instincts  of  our  nature  bind  us  indis- 
solubly  to  them  and  link  our  fates  with  theirs.  Men  cannot  live  without  a 
past ;  it  is  as  essential  to  them  as  a  future.  Into  its  vast  confines  we  still 
journey  to-day,  and  converse  with  our  Pilgrim  Fathers.  We  will  speak  to 
them  and  they  shall  answer  us. 

Two  centuries  and  a  quarter  ago,  a  little  tempest-tost,  weather-beaten  bark, 
barely  escaped  from  the  jaws  of  the  wild  Atlantic,  landed  upon  the  bleakest 
shore  of  New  England.  From  her  deck  disembarked  a  hundred  and  one  care- 
worn exiles.  To  the  casual  observer  no  event  could  seem  more  insignificant. 
The  contemptuous  eye  of  the  world  scarcely  deigned  to  notice  it.  Yet  the 
famous  vessel  that  bore  Caesar  and  his  fortunes,  carried  but  an  ignoble  freight 
compared  with  that  of  the  Mayflower.  Her  little  band  of  pilgrims  brought 
with  them  neither  wealth  nor  power,  but  the  principles  of  civil  and  religious 
freedom.  They  planted  them  for  the  first  time  in  the  Western  Continent. 
They  cherished,  cultivated  and  developed  them  to  a  full  and  luxuriant  maurity ; 
and  then  furnished  them  to  their  posterity  as  the  only  sure  and  permanent 
foundations  for  a  free  government.  Upon  those  foundations  rests  the  fabric  of 
our  great  Republic:  upon  those  principles  depends  the  career  of  human 
liberty.  Little  did  the  miserable  pedant  and  bigot  who  then  wielded  the 
sceptre  of  Great  Britain  imagine  that  from  this  feeble  settlement  of  persecuted 
and  despised  Puritans,  in  a  century  and  a  half,  would  arise  a  nation  capable 
ot  coping  with  her  own  mighty  empire  in  arts  and  arms, 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  enter  into  the  history  of  the  Pilgrims ;  to  recount 
the  bitter  persecutions  and  ignominious  sufferings  which  drove  them  from 
England  ;  to  tell  of  the  eleven  years  of  peace  and  quiet  spent  in  Holland,  under 
their  beloved  and  venerated  pastor;  nor  to  describe  the  devoted  patriotism 
which  prompted  them  to  plant  a  colony  in  some  distant  land,  where  they  could 
remain  citizens  of  their  native  country  and  at  the  same  tune  be  removed  from 
;ts  oppressions :  where  they  could  enjoy  liberty  without  violating  allegiance. 


[  9  1 

Neither  shall  I  speak  of  the  perils  of  their  adventurous  voyage ;  of  the  hard- 
ships of  their  early  settlement ;  of  the  famine  which  prostrated  and  the  pesti- 
lence which  consumed  them. 

With  all  these  things  you  are  familiar,  both  from  the  page  of  history  and 
from  the  lips  of  tradition.  On  occasions*similar  to  this,  the  ablest  and  most 
honored  sons  of  New  England  have  been  accustomed  to  tell,  with  touching 
eloquence,  the  story  of  their  sufferings,  their  fortitude,  their  perseverance  and 
their  success.  With  pious  care  they  have  gathered  and  preserved  the 
scattered  memorials  of  those  early  days,  and  the  names  of  Carver,  Bradford, 
Winslow,  Standish,  and  their  noble  companions,  have  long  since  become  with 
us  venerated  household  words. 

There  were,  however,  some  traits  that  distinguished  the  enterprise  of  the 
Pilgrims  from  all  others,  and  which  are  well  worthy  of  continued  remembrance. 
In  founding  their  colony  they  sought  neither  wealth  nor  conquest,  but  only 
peace  and  freedom.  They  asked  but  for  a  region  where  they  could  make  their 
own  laws,  and  worship  God  according  to  the  dictates  of  their  own  consciences. 
From  the  moment  they  touched  the  shore,  they  labored,  with  orderly,  syste- 
matic and  persevering  industry.  They  cultivated,  without  a  murmur,  a  poor 
and  ungrateful  soil,  which  even  now  yields  but  a  stubborn  obedience  to  the 
dominion  of  the  plough.  They  made  no  search  for  gold,  nor  tortured  the 
miserable  savages  to  wring  from  them  the  discovery  ol  imaginary  mines. 
Though  landed  by  a  treacherous  pilot  upon  a  barren  and  inhospitable  coast, 
they  sought  neither  richer  fields  nor  a  more  genial  climate.  They  found 
liberty,  and  for  the  rest  it  mattered  little.  For  more  than  eleven  years  they 
had  meditated  upon  their  enterprise,  and  it  was  no  small  matter  could  turn 
them  from  its  completion.  On  the  spot  where  first  they  rested  from  their 
wanderings,  with  stern  and  high  resolve,  they  built  their  little  city  and  founded 
their  young  republic.  There  honesty,  industry,  knowledge  and  piety  grew  up 
together  in  happy  union.  There,  in  patriarcal  simplicity  and  republican 
equality,  the  Pilgrim  fathers  and  mothers  passed  their  honorable  days,  leaving 
to  their  posterity  the  invaluable  legacy  of  their  principles  and  example. 

How  proudly  can  we  compare  their  conduct  with  that  of  the  adventurers  o, 
other  nations  who  preceded  them.  How  did  the  Spaniard  colonize  ?  Let 
Mexico,  Peru  and  Hispaniola  answer.  He  followed  in  the  train  of  the  great 
Discoverer,  like  a  devouring  pestilence.  His  cry  was  gold!  gold!!  gold!!' 
Never  in  the  history  of  the  world  had  the  "  sacra  fanies  auri :'  exhibited  itself 
with  such  fearful  intensity.  His  imagination  maddened  with  visions  of  sudden 
and  boundLess  wealth,  elad  in  mail,  he  leaped  upon  the  New  World,  an  armed 
robber.  In  greedy  haste  he  grasped  the  sparkling  sand,  then  oast  it  down 
with  curses,  when  he  found  the  glittering  grains  were  not  of  gold. 

Pitiless  as  the  blood-hound  by  his  side,  plunged  into  the  primival  forests, 
crossed  rivers,  lakes,  and  mountains,  and  penetrated  to  the  very  heart  of  the 
continent.  No  region,  however  rich  in  soil,  delicious  in  climate,  or  luxuriant 
in  production,  could  tempt  his  stay.     In  vain  the  soft  breeze  of  the  tropics, 


[   10  ] 

laden  with  aromatic  fragrance,  wooed  him  to  rest  ;  in  vain  the  smiling  valleys, 
covered  with  spontaneous  fruits  and  flowers,  invited  him  to  peaceful  quiet. 
His  search  was  still  for  gold :  the  accursed  hunger  could  not  be  appeased. 
The  simple  natives  gazed  upon  him  in  superstitious  wonder,  and  worshipped 
him  as  a  god;  and  he  proved  to  them  a  god,  but  an  infernal  one  — terrible, 
cruel  and  remorseless.  With  bloody  hands  he  tore  the  ornaments  from  their 
persons  and  the  shrines  from  their  altars :  he  tortured  them  to  discover  hidden 
treasure,  and  slew  them  that  he  might  search,  even  in  their  wretched  throats, 
for  concealed  gold.  Well  might  the  miserable  Indians  imagine  that  a  race  of 
evil  deities  had  come  among  them  more  bloody  and  relentless  than  those  who 
presided  over  their  own  sanguinary  rites. 

Now  let  us  turn  to  the  Pilgrims.  They,  too,  were  tempted ;  and  had  they 
yielded  to  the  temptation  how  different  night  have  been  the  destinies  of  this 
continent — how  different  must  have  been  our  own  !  Previous  to  their  under- 
taking, the  Old  World  was  filled  with  strange  and  wonderful  accounts  of  the 
New.  The  unbounded  wealth,  drawn  by  the  Spaniards  from  Mexico  and 
South  America,  seemed  to  afford  rational  support  for  the  wildest  assertions. 
Each  succeeding  adventurer,  returning  from  his  voyage,  added  to  the  Arabian 
tales  a  still  more  extravagant  story.  At  length  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  the  most 
accomplished  and  distinguished  of  all  those  bold  voyageurs,  announced  to  the 
world  his  discovery  of  the  province  Guiana  and  its  magnificent  capital,  the 
far-famed  city  of  El  Dorado.  We  smile  now  at  his  account  of  the  "  great 
and  golden  city,"  and  "the  mighty,  rich  and  beautiful  empire,"  We  can 
hardly  imagine  that  any  one  could  have  believed,  for  a  moment,  in  their 
existence,  At  that  day,  however,  the  whole  matter  was  received  with  the 
most  implicit  faith.  Sir  Walter  professed  to  have  explored  the  country,  and 
thus  glowingly  describes  it  from  his  own  observation  ; 

'•  I  never  saw  a  more  beautiful  country,  nor  more  lively  prospects  ;  hills  so 
raised  here  and  there  over  the  valleys — the  river  winding  into  divers  branches 
-—the  plains  adjoining,  without  bush  or  stubble — all  fair  green  grass — the  deer 
crossing  in  every  path — the  birds,  towards  the  evening,  singing  on  every  tree 
with  a  thousand  several  tunes — the  air  fresh  with  a  gentle  easterly  wind :  and 
every  stone  that  we  stopped  to  take  up  promised  either  gold  or  silver  by  its 
complexion.  For  health,  good  air,  pleasure  and  riches,  I  am  resolved  it  cannot 
\x:  equalled  by  any  region  either  in  the  East  or  West." 

The  Pilgrims  were  urged,  in  leaving  Holland,  to  Keek  this  charming  country 
and  plant  their  colony  among  its  Arcadian  bowers.  Well  might  the  poor 
wanderers  cast  a  longing  glance  towards  its  happy  valleys,  which  seemed  to 
invite  to  pious  contemplation  and  peaceful  labor.  Well  might  the  green  grass, 
the  pleasant  groves,  the  tame  deer  and  the  singing  birds,  allure  them  to  thru 
smiling  land  beneath  the  equinoctial  line.  But  while  they  doubted  not  tin- 
existence  of  this  wonderous  region,  they  resisted  its  tempting  charms.  They 
had  resolved  to  vindicate,  at  the  same  time,  their  patriotism  and  their  princi- 
pies — to  dominion  to  their  native  land,  and  to  demonstrate  to  .the  world  the 
practicability  of  civil  and  religious  liberty.     After  full  discussion  and  mature 


[  11  ] 

deliberation,  they  determined  that  their  great  objects  could  be  best  accom- 
plished by  a  settlement  on  some  portion  of  the  Northern  continent,  which 
would  hold  out  no  temptation  to  cupidity— no  inducement  to  persecution.  Put- 
ting aside,  then,  all  considerations  of  wealth  and  ease,  they  addressed  them- 
selves with  high  resolution  to  the  accomplishment  of  their  noble  purpose.  In 
the  language  of  the  historian,  "Trusting  to  God  and  themselves.*'  they 
embarked  upon  their  perilous  enterprise. 

As  I  said  before,  I  shall  not  accompany  them  in  their  adventurous  voyage. 
Onthe22dday  of  December,  1630,  according  to  our  present  computation, 
their  footsteps  pressed  the  famous  rock  which  has  ever  since  remained  sacred 
to  their  venerated  memory.  Poets,  painters  and  orators  have  tasked  their 
powers  to  do  justice  to  this  great  scene.  Indeed  it  is  full  of  moral  grandeur, 
nothing  can  be  more  beautiful,  more  pathetic,  or  more  sublime.  Behold  the 
Pilgrims,  as  they  stood  on  that  cold  December  day — stern  men,  gentle  women, 
and  feeble  children— all  uniting  in  singing  a  hymn  of  cheerful  thanksgiving  to 
the  Good  God,  who  had  conducted  them  safely  across  the  mighty  deep,  and 
permitted  them  to  land  upon  that  sterile  shore.  See  how  their  upturned  facts 
glow  with  a  pious  confidence  which  the  sharp  winter  winds  cannot  chill,  nor 
the  gloomy  forest  shadows  darken  : 

''Not  as  the  coqucror  comes, 
They,  tin'  true-hearted  came; 
N^t  with  the  roll  of  the  stirring  drum, 
Nor  the  trumpet,  that  sings  of  fame; 
Noras  tin'  flying  come, 
In  silence  and  in  fear — 
hey  Bhook  the  depths  of  the  desert  gloom 
With  their  hymns  of  lofty  cheer." 
Noble  and  pious  band !   your  holy  confidence  was  not  in  vain  ;  your  "  hymns  ol 
lofty  cheer"  find  echo  still  in  the  hearts  of  greatful  millions.     Your  descend- 
ants, when  pressed  by  adversity,  or  when  addressing  themselves  to  some 
noble  action,  turn   to  the  "landing  <>f  the   Pilgrims,"  and  find  heart  for  any 
fate— strength  for  any  enterprise. 

How  simple,  yet  how  instructive,  are  the  annals  of  this  little  settlement. 
In  the  cabin  of  the  Mayflower  they  settled  a  general  form  of  government, 
upon  the  principles  of  a  pure  democracy.  In  1636  they  published  a  declaration 
of  rights,  and  established  a  body  of  laws.  The  first  fundamental  article  was 
in  these  words:  "That  no  act,  imposition,  law  or  ordinance  be  made  or 
imposed  upon  us,  at  present  or  to  come,  but  such  as  has  been  or  shall  be  en- 
acted by  the  consent  of  the  body  of  freemen  or  associates,  or  their  representa- 
tives legally  assembled,"  etc. 

Here  we  find  advanced  the  whole  principle  of  the  Revolution — the  whole 
doctrine  of  our  republican  institutions.  Our  fathers,  a  hundred  years  before 
the  Revolution,  tested  successfully,  as  far  as  they  were  concerned,  the  princi- 
ple of  self-government,  and  solved  the  problem,  whether  law  and  order  can 
co-exist  with  liberty.     But  let  us  not  forget  that  they  were  wise  and  good 


[   12  ] 

men  who  made  the  noble  experiment,  and  that  it  may  yet  fail  in  our  hands, 
unless  we  imitate  their  patriotism  and  virtues. 

There  are  some  who  find  fault  with  the  character  of  the  Pilgrims — who 
love  not  the  simplicity  of  their  manners,  nor  the  austerity  of  their  lives.  They 
were  men,  and  of  course  imperfect;  but  the  world  may  well  be  challenged  to 
point  out,  in  the  whole  course  of  history,  men  of  purer  purpose  or  braver 
action — men  who  have  exercised  a  more  beneficial  influence  upon  the  desti- 
nies of  the  human  race,  or  left  behind  them  more  enduring  memorials  of  their 
existence. 

At  all  events,  it  is  not  for  the  sons  of  New  England  to  search  for  the  faults 
of  their  ancestors.  We  gaze  with  profound  veneration  upon  their  awful 
shades ;  we  feel  a  noble  pride  in  the  country  they  colonized — in  the  institutions 
they  founded — in  the  example  they  bequeathed.  We  exult  in  our  birth-place 
and  in  our  lineage. 

Who  would  not  rather  be  of  the  Pilgrim  stock  than  claim  descent  from  the 
proudest  Norman  that  ever  planted  his  robber  blood  in  the  halls  of  the  Saxon, 
or  the  boldest  paladin  that  quaffed  wine  at  the  table  of  Charlemagne  ?  Well 
may  we  be  proud  of  our  native  land,  and  turn  with  fond  affection  to  its  rocky 
shores.  The  spirit  of  the  Pilgrims  still  pervades  it  and  directs  its  fortunes. 
Behold  the  thousand  temples  of  the  Most  High,  that  nestle  in  its  happy  val- 
leys and  crown  its  swelling  hills.  See  how  their  glittering  spires  pierce  the 
blue  sky,  and  seem  like  so  many  celestial  conductors,  ready  to  avert  the 
lightning  of  an  angry  Heaven.  The  piety  of  the  Pilgrim  Patriarchs  is  not 
vet  extinct,  nor  have  the  sons  forgotten  the  God  of  their  fathers. 

Behold  yon  simple  building  near  the  crossing  of  the  village  roads  !  It  is 
small  and  of  rude  construction,  but  stands  in  a  pleasant  and  quiet  spot.  A 
magnificent  old  elm  spreads  its  broad  arms  above  and  seems  to  lean  towards 
it,  as  a  strong  man  bends  to  shelter  and  protect  a  child.  A  brook  runs  through 
the  meadow  near,  and  hard  by  there  is  an  orchard — but  the  trees  have  suffered 
much  and  bear  no  fruit,  except  npon  the  most  remote  and  inaccessible 
branches.  From  within  its  walls  comes  a  busy  bum,  such  as  you  may  hear 
in  a  disturbed  bee  hive.  Now  peep  through  yonder  window  and  you  will  see 
a  hundred  children,  with  rosy  cheeks,  mischievous  eyes  and  demure  faces,  all 
engaged,  or  pretending  to  be  so,  in  their  little  lessons.  It  is  the  public  school 
— the  free,  the  common  school — provided  by  laws  :  open  to  all :  claimed  from 
the  community  as  a  right,  not  accepted  as  a  bounty.  Here  the  children  of 
rich  and  poor,  high  and  low,  meet  upon  perfect  equality,  and  commence  under 
the  same  auspices  the  race  of  life.  Here  the  sustenance  of  the  mind  is  served 
up  to  all  alike,  as  the  Spartans  served  their  food  upon  the  public  table.  Here 
young  Ambition  climbs  his  little  ladder,  and  boyish  Genius  plumes  his  half- 
fledged  wing.  From  among  those  laughing  children  will  go  forth  the  men 
who  are  to  control  the  destinies  of  their  age  and  country ;  the  statesman 
whose  wisdom  is  to  guide  the  Senate — the  poet  who  will  take  captive  the 
hearts  of  the  people  and  bind  them  together  with  immortal  song — the  philoso- 


t   13  1 

pher  who,  boldly  seizing  upon  the  elements  themselves  will  compel  them  to 
his  wishes,  and,  through  new  combinations  of  their  primal  laws,  by  some 
great  discovery  revolutionize  both  art  and  science. 

That  common  village  school  is  New  England's  fairest  boast — the  brightest 
jewel  that  adorns  her  brow.  The  principle  that  society  is  bound  to  provide 
for  its  members  education  as  well  as  protection,  so  that  none  need  be  ignorant 
except  from  choice,  is  the  most  important  that  belongs  to  modern  philosophy 
It  is  essential  to  a  republican  government.  Universal  education  is  not  only 
the  best  and  surest,  but  the  only  sure  foundation  for  free  institutions.  True 
liberty  is  the  child  of  knowledge ;  she  pines  away  and  dies  in  the  arms  of 
ignorance. 

Honor,  then,  to  the  early  fathers  of  New  England,  from  whom  came  the 
spirit  which  has  built  a  schoolhouse  by  every  sparkling  fountain,  and  bids  all 
come  as  freely  to  the  one  as  the  other.  All  honor,  too,  to  this  noble  city,  who 
has  not  disdained  to  follow  the  example  of  her  Northern  sisters,  but  has  wisely 
determined  that  the  intellectual  thirst  of  her  children  deserves  as  much  atten- 
tion as  their  physical,  and  that  it  is  mufh  her  duty  to  provide  the  means  of 
assuaging  the  one  as  of  quenching  the  other. 

But  the  spirit  of  the  Pilgrims  survives,  not  only  in  knowledge  and  piety  of 
their  sons,  but,  most  of  all,  in  their  indefatigable  enterprise  and  indomitable 
perseverance. 

They  have  wrestled  with  nature  till  they  have  prevailed  against  her,  and 
compelled  her  reluctantly  to  reverse  her  own  laws.  The  sterile  soil  has  be- 
come productive  under  their  sagacious  culture,  and  the  barren  rock,  astonished, 
finds  itself  covered  with  luxuriant  and  unaccustomed  verdure. 

Upon  the  banks  of  every  river  they  build  temples  to  industry  and  stop  the 
squanderings  of  the  spend-thrift  waters.  They  bind  the  naiades  of  the  brawl- 
ing stream,  and  compel  them,  like  the  sad  daughters  of  Danaus,  to  pour  un- 
ceasingly from  their  glittering  urns  the  sparkling  treasures  of  their  crystal 
fountains.  They  drive  the  dryades  from  their  accustomed  haunts,  and  force 
them  to  desert  each  favorite  grove  ;  for  upon  river,  creek  and  bay  they  are 
busy  transforming  the  crude  forest  into  staunch  and  gallant  vessels.  From 
every  inlet  or  indenture  along  the  rocky  shore  swim  forth  these  ocean  birds — 
born  in  the  wild  wood,  fledged  upon  the  wave.  Behold  how  they  spread  their 
white  pinions  to  the  favoring  breeze,  and  wing  their  flight  to  every  quarter  of 
the  globe — the  carrier  pigeons  of  the  world  !  It  is  upon  the  unstable  element 
the  sons  of  New  England  have  achieved  their  greatest  triumphs.  Their  ad- 
venturous prows  vex  the  waters  of  every  sea.  Bold  and  restless  as  the  old 
Northern  Vikings,  they  go  forth  to  seek  their  fortunes  in  the  mighty  deep. 
The  ocean  is  their  pasture,  and  over  its  wide  prairies  they  follow  the  monstrous 
herds  that  feed  upon  its  azure  fields.  As  the  hunter  casts  his  lasso  upon  the 
wild  horse,  so  they  throw  their  lines  upon  the  tumbling  whale.  They  "draw 
out  Leviathan  with  a  hook."  They  "fill  his  skin  with  barbed  irons,"  and 
in  spite  of  his  terrible  strength  they  "  part  him  among  the  merchants."  To 
them  there  are  no  piliars  of  Hercules.  They  seek  with  avidity  new  regions. 
9 


I    U    | 

and  fear  not  to  be  •'"the  first  that  ever  burst' :  into  unknown  seas.  Had  they 
been  the  companions  of  Columbus,  the  great  mariner  would  not  have  been 
urged  to  return,  though  he  had  sailed  westward  to  his  dying  day. 

Glorious  New  England !  thou  art  still  true  to  thy  ancient  fame  and  worthy 
of  thy  ancestral  honors.  We,  thy  children,  have  assembled  in  this  far-distant 
land  to  celebrate  thy  birth-day.  A  thousand  fond  associations  throng  upon  us, 
roused  by  the  spirit  of  the  hour.  On  thy  pleasant  valleys  rest  like  sweet  dews 
of  morning  the  gentle  recollections  of  our  early  life ;  around  thy  hills  and 
mountains  cling  like  gathering  mists  the  mighty  memories  of  the  Revolution  ; 
and  far  away  in  the  horizon  of  thy  past  gleam,  like  thy  own  bright  Northern 
Lights,  the  awful  virtues  of  our  Pilgrim  sires  !  But  while  we  devote  this  day 
to  the  remembrance  of  our  native  land,  we  forget  not  that  in  which  our  happy 
lot  is  cast.  We  exult  in  the  reflection  that  though  we  count  by  thousands  of 
miles  which  separate  us  from  our  birth-place,  still  our  country  is  the  same. 
We  are  no  exiles  meeting  upon  the  banks  of  a  foreign  river,  to  swell  its  waters 
with  our  home-sick  tears.  Here  floats  the  same  banner  which  rustled  above 
our  boyish  heads,  except  that  its  mighty  folds  are  wider  and  its  glittering 
stars  increased  in  number. 

The  sons  of  New  England  are  found  in  every  State  of  the  broad  Republic. 
In  the  East,  the  South,  and  the  unbounded  West,  their  blood  mingles  freely 
with  every  kindred  current.  We  have  but  changed  our  chamber  in  the 
paternal  mansion  ;  in  all  its  rooms  we  are  at  home,  and  all  who  inhabit  it  are 
pur  brothers.  To  us  the  Union  has  but  one  domestic  hearth :  its  household 
gods  are  all  the  same.  Upon  us  then  peculiarly  devolves  the  duty  of  feeding 
the  fires  upon  that  kindly  hearth ;  of  guarding  with  pious  care  those  sacred 
household  gods. 

We  cannot  do  with  less  than  the  whole  Union  ;  to  us  it  admits  of  no 
division.  In  the  veins  of  our  children  flows  Northern  and  Southern  blood  ; 
how  shall  it  be  separated  who  shall  put  asunder  the  best  affections  of  the 
heart,  the  noblest  instincts  of  our  nature  ?  We  love  the  land  of  our  adoption, 
so  do  we  that  of  our  birth.  Let  us  ever  be  true  to  both  ;  and  always  exert 
ourselves  in  maintaining  the  unity  of  our  country,  the  integrity  of  the 
Republic. 

Accursed,  then,  be  the  hand  put  forth  to  loosen  the  golden  cord  of  Union; 
thrice  accursed  the  traitorous  lips,  whether  of  Northern  fanatic  or  Southern 
demagogue,  which  shall  propose  its  severance. 

But  no  !  the  Union  cannot  be  dissolved ;  its  fortunes  are  too  brilliant  to  be 
marred  ;  its  destinies  too  powerful  to  be  resisted.  Here  will  be  their  greatest 
triumph,  their  most  mighty  developement. 

And  when,  a  century  hence,  this  Crescent  City  shall  have  filled  her  golden 
horns  ;  when  within  her  broad-armed  port  shall  be  gathered  the  products  of 
the  industry  of  a  hundred  millions  of  freemen  ;  when  galleries  of  art  and  halls 
of  learning  shall  have  made  classic  this  mass  of  trade  ;  then  may  the  sons  of 
the  Pilgrims,  still  wandering  from  the  bleak  hills  of  the  North,  stand  upon 
the  banks  of  the  Great  River  and  exclaim  with  mingled  pride  and  wonder, 
Lo  !  this  is  our  country  :  when  did  the  world  ever  witness  so  rich  and  mag- 
nificent a  City — so  great  and  glorious  a  Republic  ' 


The  design  of  "The  New  England  Society  of  Louisiana"  in 
distributing  among  the  Sons  of  New  England,  in  New  Orleans,  copies  of  its 
Constitution,  together  with  the  eloquent  Oration  of  its  departed  associate, 
Sargent  S.  Prentiss,  is  two  fold:  —  to  create  an  opportunity  whereby 
the  object  and  purpose,  the  wants  and  claims  of  the  Society  may  be  laid 
before  each  resident  from  the  land  of  the  Pilgrims,  and  to  pay  a  well  deserved 
tribute  of  respect  and  affection  to  the  fondly  cherished  memory  of  a  gifted 
and  lamented  Brother. 

The  object  and  purpose  of  the  Society  is  plainly  set  forth  in  the  second 

article  of  its  Constitution,  which  is  in  these  words : 

"  Article  II.  Object  of  the  Society.  The  sole  purpose  of  this  Institution 
shall  be  to  foster  among  its  members,  friendship  and  good  feeling,  and  to  assist 
the  destitute  and  those  worthy  of  charity  coming  from  the  New  England 
States  of  Union." 

Thus,  while  it  aims  to  promote  a  social  intercourse,  its  purpose  is  so  emi- 
inently  charitable  that  it  may  be  termed  especially  a  benevolent  association' 
The  expenses  of  the  annual  celebrations  are  provided  for  by  those  who  join 
in  those  festivities ;  while  the  annual  subscriptions,  after  the  defrayment  of 
the  expenses,  are  devoted  to  beneficent  purposes. 

Its  silent  and  tranquil  charities  have  indeed  proved  a  cheerful  comfort,  in 
the  sad  hours  of  sickness  and  need,  to  many  a  lonely  and  disconsolate  Brother, 
who,  far  from  his  birth-land,  was  breathing  his  last  in  penury  amidst  strangers. 

It  has  assuaged  the  deep  agony  of  the  widow  in  the  bitter  hour  of  her 
despondency,  and  it  has  dried  up  the  tear  of  the  orplian,  as  that  heaviest  of 
all  burdens,  home  sickness,  was  lifted  from  off  the  heart  by  the  means  it  has 
provided  to  re-convey  them  to  their  loved,  though  far  distant  home. 

And  where  Death  had  set  its  seal  upon  the  forsaken  and  destitute,  it  has 
performed  the  last  sad  rites  of  brotherhood  —  preserving  from  utter  neglect 
and  forgetfulness  an  unfortunate  wanderer  from  the  land  of  the  Puritans  • 
thus  carrying  untold  consolation  to  the  mourning  hearts  of  the  household  there. 

Tt  has  done  this  —  it  would  do  more  —  and  it  seeks  to  have  its  means  com- 
mensurate with  its  end. 


'  [   16  ] 

It  now  numbers  but   one  hundred  members,  and  this,  too,  when  it    is 
believed  we  can  boast  of  more  than  two  thousand  in  our  midst,  eligible  to 
membership.     The  cause  of  this  small  proportion  of  New  Englanders  among      * 
us,  who  are  enrolled  as  members,  lies,  it  is  thought,   in  the  quiet  and  unob-f 
strusive  movements  of  the  Society,  whose  very  existence  seems  only  to  have 
been  made  public  by  the   celebrations  of  its  returning  anniversaries.     The 
knowledge  of  its  cliarities  are  confined  to  the  acting  officers  and  the  friend" 
who  solicits  the  contribution ;  and  they  are  dispensed  so  much  in  the  spirit  of  / 
liquidating  an  acknowledged  debt,  that  the  recipient  is  spared  the  feeling  of 
obligation. 

In  its  social  character  the  Society  would  do  something  to  extend,  widen 
and  increase  the  New  England  influence  in  this  loved-land  of  our  adoption, —    \ 
for  it  is  believed  that,  great  and  growing  as  this  influence  may  now  be  in  our      \ 
midst,  the  advancement  and  prosperity,  the  intelligence  and  energy,  the  hap- 
piness  and  the  greatness,    the  commercial,    agricultural  and   manufactural 
interests  of  our  Statte  and  city  demand  even  more. 

It  is  thought  the  Society  has  a  rightful  claim  upon  every  resident  from 
New  England,  for  the  influence  of  its  name,  the  countenance  of  his  friend- 
ship, and  the  support  of  his  annual  subscription. 

Sons  of  New  England!  —  this  Society  is  yours.  Shall  it  flourish,  or  shall 
it  be  dissolved  ?  This  Charity  is  yours  —  shall  it  be  living  and  active,  or 
shall  it  cease  to  be  ?     The  answer  is  with  you,. 

Application  for  membership  may  be  made  through  any  member. 


Hollinger  Corp. 
pH  8.5 


